XianRL

A close friend sent this to me yesterday, as he knows I'm moving to San Fran this summer.

Not sure if he's trying to deter me from leaving or just giving me a heads up. Either way, I'm of the school that if you ride a bike a lot, accidents happen. Hell if you wake up in the morning, you're prone to accidents.

knotty

I don't know about that NYT article especially about the dooring and cars, seems it should have been titled "any city USA". It surely shouldn't deter you from moving here. As long as your riding with all your street smarts, accidents generally are minimal.

powpow

"The police officer was one of 101 drivers to “door” a cyclist in San Francisco over the past two years, according to an analysis by The Bay Citizen of 1,147 bicycle accidents recorded by the San Francisco Police Department during that period."

I'm surprised it was only 101 doors. I would've guessed higher. Of course, these are only the "reported" numbers, so the real number is likely much higher.

johnny99

The same article appeared in one of the local tabloids. It is worth reading to learn about known hazardous areas and also about the types of crashes that most often happen. Then you can pay more attention to minimize your risk.

Cars also crash into other cars. That doesn't stop anyone from driving cars.

531phile 

You might have already seen this, but check this out: https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ent-Occurances

Avoid riding on Market Street and locking your bike there.

XianRL

Yup, saw that thread. And Knotty, there's nothing that's gonna stop me from moving there. I'm psyched!

knotty

Yeah, there are beautiful places for rides in and around the SF bay area and with dry weather coming, there will be many rides throughout summer. My group's been riding 45 years, 3-5 days and week and no accidents besides a scraped knee once in a while.

XianRL

Knotty, that sounds rad. I look forward to riding with anyone and everyone. When are the critical mass rides?

bikingshearer 

Xian:

The Bay Area is God's Country for cycling. Riding in SF has its challenges, but use some common sense and you'll do fine. And once out of town (which is close by and e3asily accessible) there is some of the best riding (road or mountain bike) in the world, combined with excellent weather.

Alarmist articles to the contrary, the driving public around here is pretty aware and pretty bike-friendly. Just don't act like an entitled ass and the vast majority of drivers will treat you right. Of course, even the friendliest driver sometimes has a brain-fart or simply forgets to check the blind spots, etc., but everyione on the road (or sidewalk) has to pay attention for that. But I have had far fewer nasty-driver incidents per mile around here than anywhere else I have had a chance to ride.

Welcome to the world of year-'round riding. You're going to like it here.

XianRL

Gotcha. I should be there by June, and I hope no later than July. Then we can all go riding? I might have to pick up a road bike once I get there. Bringing a hybrid that I'm outfitting for errands (groceries, shopping, etc.) and a fixed-gear build.

Also shearer, I see you're in Berkeley. My aunt's sister owns a little restaurant called the Meal Ticket. Have you heard of it?

One spoke short

You're gonna love it here! I ride in the south bay but the vibe is good all over and the cagers are pretty good about watchin out for ya. Critical Mass is the last friday of each month. Check out San Jose Bike Party if you visit the south bay. Enjoy!